The governing body representing Presbyterian churches in the area voted last week to support the decision of the national Presbyterian Church (U. S.A.) to allow gays and lesbians in same-sex relationships to be eligible for ordination.
In a 182-108 vote March 22, the Presbytery of Philadelphia approved Amendment 10-A to the church constitution, which would drop the provision that ordained Presbyterian leaders who are not married to a member of the opposite sex must live in celibacy.
Last summer, Amendment 10-A passed the Presbyterian General Assembly with 53 percent of the vote. The measure would lift the stipulation that those called must live in “fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman or chastity in singleness” and replace it with a policy that bases ordination on one’s “ability and commitment” to fulfill the responsibilities of an officer, leaving out marital status and sexual orientation.
In order for the new policy to go into effect, it needs to be approved by a majority of the nation’s 173 presbyteries, or regional governing bodies — a total of 87 affirmative votes. With the Philadelphia nod, the policy change, as of press time, has 74 presbyteries in favor and 53 opposed, with 46 still left to vote.
The issue failed when put to the presbyteries in 2008-09.
Michael Adee, executive director of More Light Presbyterians, which works for the full participation of LGBT individuals in the Presbyterian Church, said this year’s vote looks more promising.
This marks the first time that the “yes” votes are ahead, and 14 presbyteries that voted against the policy change the last time around have switched sides.
“We stand at a remarkable moment in the life of the Presbyterian Church,” Adee said. “We are just 13 votes from ratification of the policy change, so we’re starting down a tunnel of probable policy change right now. But this isn’t just about policy change, it’s really about cultural change. It’s about people understanding that LGBT people can be faithful Christians, good ministers and officers in the church.”
While cultural change has been spreading throughout the country since the last vote, Pennsylvania still has a way to go — of the state’s 11 presbyteries that have thus far cast votes on 10-A, only Philadelphia and Donegal did so in support. Three more presbyteries will vote before June, with only one, Lehigh, having approved the amendment last time.
The Presbytery of Pittsburgh voted 163-80 against 10-A and the Presbytery of Shenango, which will vote in June on the measure, two years ago voted 101-4 against ratification, making it one of the most conservative in the nation.
But, Adee noted, advances have been made in the Keystone State.
The Presbytery of Donegal, which covers York, Lancaster and Chester counties, was one of the 14 that switched to “yes” votes in the past two years, and Philadelphia widened its margin of votes about 10 percent, up from the 2009 vote of 153-139.
“I’d compare Pennsylvania to what we’ve been seeing in places like Georgia, where we had one presbytery that supports it with an overwhelming margin — Atlanta — and then for the first time Savannah also voted positively, but we expect big losses in a lot of the other presbyteries throughout the state,” Adee said. “And a key difference in Pennsylvania is looking at the presbyteries of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. They’re both very large, major cities with large gay communities and universities and a lot that would make you think they’d support change, but the cast of the Pittsburgh presbytery is still pretty hardline conservative.”
Adee said the fight for LGBT participation in the Presbyterian Church dates to 1974, when the Rev. David Sindt was the first Presbyterian minister to come out. Several years later, a church commission undertook a study to determine how gay and lesbian ministers could fit into the church and, despite a recommendation that open gay and lesbians be permitted to serve, the General Assembly in 1978 approved a policy banning the ordination of open gays and lesbians. The rule, however, left the decision of the ordination of celibate gays and lesbians up to local-level church leaders.
In 1996, the church amended its policy to include the “fidelity and chastity” language, and efforts have been undertaken at each General Assembly since for its repeal.
Adee said the building momentum to overturn the policy and allow full participation by LGBT people has been inspiring, especially in light of the role that religious organizations have played in constructing the social consciousness toward gays.
“This vote on 10-A goes a long way in changing that and creating a different way of understanding moral equality for LGBT people and straight people. This isn’t about ordaining every gay person — one still has to be qualified. But ordination needs to be about faith and character, not marital status and sexuality.”
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].